“We had a . . . conversation. I taught him several new words. Certainly I used a few he never expected of me. A Thornhill mouthful fit to wither a forest. I’ve a horrible feeling I sounded like my mother.” She shrugged. “But words only. I’m not a monster, Melanna. At least, I’m trying not to be. I’ve something of an idea how that will turn out.”

“I’m glad. He only wanted to help.”

Ashana arched an eyebrow. “Did he? Still, I suppose this was inevitable. Some lessons are learned only by thrusting your hand into the fire. Have you learned yours?”

Melanna longed to answer in the affirmative. Instinct warned her against. “I don’t know.”

Ashana nodded. “Better. So why am I disappointed?”

“Because I accepted your steward’s help.”

“I shouldn’t say this, but that actually impressed me. Convictions are nothing without courage to back them up. I wish I’d had your spark so young.”

Melanna blinked at the unexpected compliment. “Then . . . No, I don’t know. I’m sorry.”

“It’s not enough to be sorry. You have to understand.”

“Then tell me!” Melanna caught her tongue, aghast at her tone.

To her surprise, Ashana grinned. “Better. How long have we been having these little conversations, Melanna?”

“All my life.”

“And in that time, you’ve wanted only one thing. To rise above the position tradition demanded and be treated the equal of a son.”

“Yes, godd . . . Ashana.”

“So what did you do just now, faced with a challenge not easily overcome? You did what tradition expected and made yourself a commodity. You sought a trade that would have been accepted only by a man unworthy of the offering. Would a son do that? Would an empress?”

Like so many truths once revealed, this one blazed fit to blind. Melanna closed her eyes. “What else was I to do? My capture brought defeat. My father should not pay the price.”

Ashana sighed. “You’re not a fool, so don’t behave like one. The battle was long since lost when they took you. And your father set this war in motion, not you.”

Melanna gritted her teeth. “You’d have me abandon him?”

“I’d have you be smarter. We are none of us the folk we seem in the light. Not me, not you and not your father. It is in the darkness, when all seems hopeless – that’s when your true self stands revealed. That’s when your decisions matter most.”

She hung her head, more lost than ever. “Then perhaps I’m no empress after all.”

Ashana rose to her feet and gazed down in a not unkindly manner. “Or perhaps you merely need to think like one. You are not one woman alone. You speak for a people. That’s no small coin of trade, and can buy a great many things. You might find it already has.”